Reviewing the Role of the Internet in Radicalization Processes

Özen Odag, Anne Leiser, Klaus Boehnke

Abstract

This review presents the existing research on the role of the Internet in radicalization processes. Using a systematic literature search strategy, our paper yields 88 studies on the role of the Internet in a) right-wing extremism and b) radical jihadism. Available studies display a predominant interest in the characteristics of radical websites and a remarkable absence of a user-centred perspective. They show that extremist groups make use of the Internet to spread right wing or jihadist ideologies, connect like-minded others in echo chambers and cloaked websites, and address particularly marginalized individuals of a society, with specific strategies for recruitment. Existing studies have thus far not sufficiently examined the users of available sites, nor have they studied the causal mechanisms that unfold at the intersection between the Internet and its users. The present review suggests avenues for future research, drawing on media and violence research and research on social identity and deindividuation effects in computer-mediated communication.

Briggs, R., & Feve, S. (2013). Review of programs to counter narratives of violent extremism: What works and what are the implications for government? (Vol. July, 2013). London: Institute for Strategic Dialogue.

Chermak, S., & Gruenewald, J. A. (2014). Laying a foundation for the criminological examination of right-wing, left-wing, and Al Qaeda-inspired extremism in the United States. Terrorism and Political Violence, 27(1), 133-159.

Greenberg, K. J. (2016). Counter-radicalization via the internet. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 668(1), 165-179.

Greitemeyer, T., & Mügge, D. O. (2014). Video games do affect social outcomes: A meta-analytic review of the effects of violent and prosocial video game play. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 40(5), 578-589.

Huey, L., (2015). This is not your mother’s terrorism: Social media, online radicalization and the practice of political jamming. Contemporary Voices: St Andrews Journal of International Relations, 6(2).

Meleagrou-Hitchens, A. (2017). The challenges and limitations of online counter-narratives in the fight against ISIS recruitment in Europe and North America. Georgetown Journal of International Affairs 18(3), 95-104.

Mitts, T. (2019). From isolation to radicalization: Anti-muslim hostility and support for ISIS in the west. The American Political Science Review, 113(1), 173-194.

Mott, G. (2019). A storm on the horizon? “Twister” and the implications of the blockchain and peer-to-peer social networks for online violent extremism. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 42(1-2), 206-227.

Post, J. M., McGinnis, C., & Moody, K. (2014). The changing face of terrorism in the 21st century: The communications revolution and the virtual community of hatred. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 32(3), 306-334.

Richards, I. (2019). A philosophical and historical analysis of “Generation Identity”: Fascism, online media, and the European new right. Terrorism and Political Violence, online first. doi: 10.1080/09546553.2019.1662403

Spears, R., & Postmes, T. (2015). Group identity, social influence, and collective action online. In S.S. Sundar (Ed.), The Handbook of the Psychology of Communication Technology (pp. 23-46). West Sussex: John Wiley and Sons.